New bungalows for Delhi’s ministers

Delhi’s ministers will soon have a new address — and a plush one. Their swanky new bungalows, being constructed by the public works department (PWD) in North Delhi’s Civil Lines area, are almost ready and will soon be allotted to them.

Delhi’s ministers will soon have a new address — and a plush one. Their swanky new bungalows, being constructed by the public works department (PWD) in North Delhi’s Civil Lines area, are almost ready and will soon be allotted to them.

Senior PWD officials said the ministers would be able to shift before Diwali this year.

While four bungalows are being built at 8, Rajniwas Marg, the remaining two have been built at 2, Attatur Rehman Lane — just few hundred yards away from the Lieutenant Governor’s office.

The new bungalows have all modern amenities — imported marble flooring, modular kitchens, split air-conditioners in each room, separate rooms for servants and a huge lawn with a jogging track.

“The houses are being constructed in tasteful manner. Everything used in these houses is of the best quality,” said a PWD engineer.

The type 8 bungalows have five bedrooms each with a separate drawing-dining and a guest room. There are separate rooms for ministers’ offices and staff. Each bungalow is being built on an approximate area of about 930 square metres and their total cost is estimated to be R 14 crore.

“The bungalows will be ready by the end of this month. We will take a couple of more months to do the interiors,” Delhi PWD secretary Nutan Guha Biswas said.

Currently, Delhi’s six ministers live in different parts of the Capital. While transport minister Arvinder Singh lives in his official bungalow at Shamnath Marg, power minister Haroon Yusuf lives at Deen Dayal Upadhyay Marg. Industry minister Ramakant Goswami and social welfare minister Kiran Walia stay at Satya Sadan near Chanakyapuri.

Health minister Ashok Kumar Walia and PWD minister Rajkumar Chauhan, however, live in their own houses in Bharti Artist Colony and Behra Enclave, respectively.

New state guesthouse

Delhi will soon have its own ‘bhawan’. On the lines of guests houses of other states, the Delhi government has identified 33, Shamnath Marg in north Delhi to build its own bhawan.

The Shamnath Marg bungalow has its own history.

Former chief minister Madan Lal Khurana lived here but he had to resign. Later, Deep Chand Bandhu, minister in Sheila Dikshit’s first Cabinet, lived here but died while in office.